J. Jones (photo) spoke to UFC brass about the fight with Cormier. Photo: Jeff Bottari/UFC
The controversy fights between Jon Jones e Daniel Cormier during a press conference to promote UFC 178 this Monday (04) continues to give something to talk about. After publicly recanting with fans in interviews following the riot at the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino, Jones revealed the content of his conversation with Ultimate leaders after the incident and did not mention an apology to the organization's bosses, only his justifications for the confusion.
“Dana (White, UFC president) sent me a message. Lorenzo Fertitta (CEO of the organization) called me and asked me what happened. Basically, I told him the situation. I told him I've been in a lot of staring and I've witnessed a lot of staring, but I didn't expect to be hit in the throat. I told him, like a man, champion or not, that it couldn't stay like this. I can see that now. If I had allowed him to hit me and not hit me back, some people would respect me for walking away, but many others would call me a coward or a sissy for allowing that to happen. Regardless of what anyone might think, I couldn't allow that to happen. I told Lorenzo Fertitta that if someone hits me, then I'm going to do what I have to do to protect myself”, said Jones during the “FOX Sports Live” program on North American TV.
Jones also commented that, despite it being a bad episode for the image of the sport and the UFC itself, he noted that many people were excited for the September fight after what happened. “For the most part, I would say, a lot of people are loving it. They are enjoying every moment. I received calls from the Indianapolis Colts (the football team your brother Arthur Jones plays for) and several football players. I received calls from all over. They are excited, much more excited to see the fight. In a way, it was a good thing. In a completely opposite way, it was a terrible thing for the UFC”, he analyzed.
On September 27th, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, in Las Vegas (USA), Jon Jones e Daniel Cormier They will finally resolve their differences in the octagon. On the date, Jones puts the light heavyweight belt on the line for the eighth consecutive time and will be challenged by Cormier in the main fight of UFC 178. In addition to the duel for the title, the fight night also marks the return of the former bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz after almost three years away due to a series of injuries, against the Japanese Takeya Mizugaki, and the confrontation between the Irish Conor McGregor and the North American Dustin poirier.
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